I received this book for an honest review:

This book grabs you from the beginning and does stop until the end. If you like action then this is the book for you. Rollins is AWOL from the CIA black-ops units he was part of. You know something happened on his last mission but he does not talk about it. What is happening now is he is going after a gang who killed the woman he loved but was married to his brother. This is all explained.
Finding the gang trunks out to be a problem at first but along the way you get part of the back story about him along with people who won't leave him alone for whatever reason. He is also trying to stay under the radar so as to not draw attention to himself because he does have people looking for him. This was a good book at least for me and very fast-paced.

Synopsis/blurb ....

He’s quiet, ordinary looking. But if you cross him – welcome to your worst nightmare.

Tom Rollins has gone AWOL from his CIA black-ops unit and is living off-grid when he hears that the woman he loves, Alejandra, has been murdered by a person or persons unknown.

Rollins is determined to punish her killers and sets out on his own personal search and destroy mission. Applying pressure as only he knows how, he quickly discovers who was behind the killing – a vicious gang of hardened criminals.

Using his dizzying array of lethal skills, Rollins begins to take out the leaders of the gang, one by one. But then he discovers that Alejandra’s murder was part of a larger conspiracy, one that threatens death and destruction on a horrifying scale.

The conspirators are clever and ruthless. They’ve thought of everything, covered every angle. Except one - Tom Rollins.
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My take ...

I'm probably not going to offer anything new in terms of insight or analysis to a book that has already been reviewed overwhelmingly positively nearly 700 times on Amazon UK. I liked it. I've enjoyed the author's work many times before and this one was no different in that respect.

One man, albeit with a little bit of family support, fights back against a group of white supremacists and other more powerful establishment figures who are operating in the shadows. For Tom Rollins, sick of some of the operations he was forced to participate in the service of his country, it's personal initially. His brother's wife, the woman he loved was murdered. His brother almost. Retribution is necessary.

At some point in the tale it turns into a matter of duty and patriotism, or for Rollins having dispensed with such frivolities, just a matter of doing the right thing.

I do like a one man against a machine type book. I liked our main character's personal code and abilities. I enjoyed the complex difficult relationship he had with his brother and less so his father. There's plenty of action, excitement and conflict during the course of the book, but it's supported by a decent storyline. Any book which sees a bunch of racist knuckleheads getting their asses handed to them gets my vote anyway.

Lots to like and I'm looking forward to the second Tom Rollins outing soon - Wrong Turn. Blood Line is Round One. Roll on Round Two..... ding ding.

4.5 from 5

Read - June, 2021
Published - 2021
Page count - 305
Source - review copy courtesy of Net Galley and publisher, Inkubator Books
Format - Kindle

http://col2910.blogspot.com/2021/07/paul-heatley-blood-line-2021.html

As a fan of Lee Child and similar authors, I thought this book would be something I would like. To be fair, I was right! Ex-military lead character doing what needs to be done to get the problem solved. This had the added element that Tom Rollins is now a wanted man for going AWOL, so trying to do what's right, whilst also staying below the radar.

My only fault with the book in my opinion was that the ending seemed to be a bit rushed. After all of the build up of the story, including the various threads that weaved in and out of the plot, they seemed to be resolved far too quickly, including the final battle. The language and prose prior to this was great, with some gritty actions that don't dwell and become gratuitous.

Overall I enjoyed the flow of the story and look forward to reading future novels by the author.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in return for my honest review.

I received an ARC of Blood Line and in exchange I am providing my independent review. #BloodLine #NetGalley #InkubatorBooks

So this novel involves a character named Tom Rollins who is a badass. He has a code of rules about how he thinks things should be done and he doe not suffer fools lightly. Some bad guys attack his brother and kill his brother's girlfriend (who Tom had a strong affinity for). Tom decides to kick ass. He doesn't bother taking names. He gets most of the bad guys, but not all of them. Afterwards, he stays off the grid and just wants to be left alone to live his life.

I enjoyed the book and I recommend it. My only comments are that I am a bit surprised that Tom didn't have an acceptance that he was going to run into some bad apples in his chosen profession. I also wish there had been more attention to detail as to his background, skillset and how he did things.

Bloodlines is a true revenge book. You see it upfront and right in your face. It's very satisfying in that regard.
Quite enjoyable and recommended.

My thanks to NetGalley and publisher Inkubator Books for the electronic copy.

Wow! what a start to a new series. This is a fast-paced, well-written and action-packed thriller.

Anthony receives 2 texts on his "work phone" - THEY KNOW - RUN!

Tom Rollins is in Arizona, AWOL from working for the CIA on black ops. Following a disastrous and soul-destroying mission in Afghanistan he'd had enough. He's living off-grid, aware they'll be looking for him because he knows too much.
His brother Anthony has a Mexican-born, heavily pregnant girlfriend, Alejandra. Tom originally fell in love with her but whilst he was abroad she then fell in love with Anthony. A hurt Tom feels very deeply. His father lives with his second wife in a heavily fortified survivalist-type community off-grid in New Mexico. Tom takes a call from his father summoning him to his home - Anthony is in trouble. Tom's first thought is "where's Alejandra?"

The Right Arm of the Republic is a ruthless neo-Nazi group based in Harrow, Texas. They are told they have an Undercover for the FBI in their midst. That night scores of undercover agents embedded with white supremacists and neo-Nazi groups across the State are massacred. Special Agent Ben Fitzgerald is convinced there is a mole in their Dallas office. However, two names were never on the accessible list of undercover operatives - two people only he knew about - and that information was on only his laptop. He won't trust anyone in his office; he won't share his thoughts. How did someone get that information?
He's also concerned about information reaching him about a domestic terrorism plot, which he attributes to these groups. But someone is already preparing to build a bomb.........

When Tom reaches Anthony and gets some information from him, his brother refuses to tell all - except what happened to Alejandra. Tom had always cleared up after his brother but Anthony insists it's his fight alone. Tom ignores him and, armed to the teeth courtesy of his father, sets out to kill those responsible. He does so in an unquestionably professional fashion!

Totally gripping - Tom is just so resourceful. The action scenes are just enough to convey his skills without being drawn-out and OTT.

Highly recommended.

An absorbing and exciting action thriller.

Sickened by his colleagues' excesses in a war zone, and the lack of accountability, Tom Rollins goes AWOL on his return to the US. Trouble finds him back home, though, in the form of his loser brother being savagely beaten, and his brother's pregnant wife killed by a neo nazi group.

In the background is the rumour of something big about to happen, and Tom is the only person who is in a position to find out what is happening.

The book rolls along at a satisfying pace and Tom is a well drawn character, cleverly staying away from the stereotype. The book is self contained, but with a teaser that let's you know there is more to come.

Very enjoyable for fans of Jack Reacher, Orphan X and the like.

Blood Line is the first instalment in the Tom Rollins Thriller series, and what a pacy and scintillating read it is. The prologue opens with Tom Rollins and his CIA black ops unit on a mission to find Aaban Ahmadi in Afghanistan. Ahmadi had been the one organising hit and runs on US bases and convoys for the past six months and the CIA had only two days ago received intelligence as to his whereabouts. Under the cover of darkness, M4A1s in hand the team descend upon the Villa-style house located in what seemed like the middle of the desert. The five men - Captain Robert Dale, Simon Collins, Nathan Sapolsky and Ezekiel Greene - plus Rollins, begin using hand signals to communicate knowing that there is likely to be guards outside the house, even though they are some distance away. Tom and Zeke are to go in through the front. Simon and Nate will take the rear. Once inside they scan the rooms and locate Ahmadi’s bedroom. Tom immediately heads in, checks this is their man and sticks a knife into his heart. The Captain decided to keep it from Tom that their orders were to kill all those in the house but he never relayed this to him because he knew Tom would object. Now it's too late because it's done. Tom decides that as soon as their plane lands, he's out. No more black ops missions. He lands back on US soil and goes AWOL; living off the grid is something he's used to. Meanwhile, Anthony and Alejandra are kicking back in front of the box at their home in Harrow when he gets a message telling him: ”we know. RUN.” so he quickly grabs his pre-packed emergency bag and leads Alejandra to the car. They head to the relative safety of his father’s house. Alejandra is thirty-eight weeks pregnant and Anthony is hoping the stress won't bring on early labour.

Then all of a sudden a car idling by the side of the road slams into them causing the car to roll and land on its roof. Someone begins to open his door but his attention is soon directed to Alejandra when she is pulled out of the car before him; her protestations falling on deaf ears. Then he is gripped and dragged out before been spat at in the face. He comes to realise that he knows the voices of the men. They are The Right Arm Of The Republic. Here to deal with him personally. Michael Wright, Harry Turnbull, Ronald Smith, and Peter ‘Terminator’ Reid. All of this because Anthony is an undercover narcotics officer. It isn't long before things take a turn for the worse when Peter takes out a gun and proceeds to shoot Alejandra right in the stomach leading Anthony to scream. Followed by a shot in the face. They decide to take him with them as Michael wants the satisfaction of torturing him before they kill him but as they haul him back to the van they can hear the police sirens nearing. Elsewhere, Tom is laying low in Arizona when he gets a call from his father, Jeffrey, telling him he is needed back home as quickly as possible as something as happened to his beloved brother, Anthony. So he sets off from Arizona immediately. What ensues once he is informed about the situation is a hunt for those responsible and although it isn't going to be easy those willing to shoot an unarmed pregnant woman need to be off the streets for good. This is a riveting and enthralling, action-packed thriller from start to finish with an intense and emotionally-charged plot and endlessly twisty narrative that totally satisfied me. There's drama, credible characters and liberal dashes of violence throughout, and it left me wanting more of Tom, a principled and likeable protagonist. Highly recommended.

I love discovering new authors and Paul Heatley is certainly a new author for me. I read the synopsis for ‘Blood Line’ and it certainly sounded like the fast paced, adrenaline rush, Hollywood style, action, thriller blockbuster type of read I particularly enjoy. Oh it was that and so much more. I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘Blood Line’ but more about that in a bit.
I actually liked the character of Tom Rollins, who reminded me a lot of Jack Reacher from the series of books by Lee Child. He is your classic mean and moody action hero. He was in the forces but went AWOL following something that happened when he was on an ‘operation’. I won’t go too far into what happens during that ‘operation’ as it might spoil the story for others. It’s safe to say that it is a huge deal. Cross Rollins at your peril because he will certainly make you pay. Rollins is called into action by a family member and then all hell lets loose. What happens? Well for the answer to that question and so much more you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves to find out as I am not going to tell you.
Oh my flipping word, what a read this was! As soon as I started to read the story that was it. I just knew that nothing would be done for the rest of the day because I knew that I would be unable to put the book down for any length of time. To say that reading ‘Blood Line’ became addictive is a mahoosive understatement. The book travelled everywhere with me. I just couldn’t bear to miss a single second of the story. The pages turned over at a fair old pace as I worked my way through the story. Then all too quickly I reached the end of the story and I had to say farewell to Tom Rollins.
‘Blood Line’ is superbly written. The story certainly starts with a bang and then some. The author has certainly created a attention grabbing opening sequence and then he draws you into the story. Reading ‘Blood Line’ was like being on a scary and unpredictable rollercoaster ride with several twists and turns along the way. Just when you thought that you could catch your breath, gather your thoughts and reclaim your stomach then off the action would go again. I found ‘Blood Line’ to be a gripping read, which held my attention throughout and which kept me on the edge of my seat.
In short, I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘Blood Line’ and I would recommend it to other readers. I will certainly be reading more of Paul’s work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

This is a book with a fast pace and lots of action, very little waste, and still the descriptions and characters are very good. Excellent entertainment.

Tom’s gone AWOL from the CIA when the team he’s working with goes dirty. While hiding in the Southwest, he gets an emergency call from his dad. When he finds out what’s happened, he goes looking for revenge.He also gets involved with a rogue FBI agent who is out to stop an Oklahoma City-type attack. Lots of action.